10 Notable Career Changes Of Famous Comic Book Characters

4. Norman Osborn €“ Director Of H.A.M.M.E.R.

Norman Osborn may not have become President like Luthor did, but he managed to weasel his way into a position nearly as powerful. Known to the public as the president of OsCorp Industries, Osborn had spent many years disguised as the Green Goblin and solidified himself as one of Spider-Man€™s most dangerous enemies. Eventually the Daily Bugle discovered Osborn€™s extracurricular goblin activities and outed his identity to the public. After being captured by S.H.I.E.L.D., he started taking medication to keep his Goblin personality buried and became the director of the Thunderbolts, a group of reformed super villains. His true moment to shine came during Secret Invasion when he intercepted a communication meant for Nick Fury on the Skrull Queen€™s location. Heading over there himself, he shot the Queen and the shooting was caught on-camera for the world to see. Publicly seen as a hero, Osborn used his new fame to replace Tony Stark as head of S.H.I.E.L.D. and rebrand the group as H.A.M.M.E.R. They never did reveal what that stood for. Of course, like most villains, Osborn wasn€™t really doing all this for the good of the country. Decking one of Stark€™s Iron Man armors in patriotic colors, Osborn became Iron Patriot and led his own team of 'Avengers,' who were really disguised criminals and manipulated heroes. Secretly, he formed an alliance called the Cabal, which consisted of Doctor Doom, Loki, Emma Frost, Namor, and the Hood. Together, they helped each other amass power and pursue their own agendas across the world. Osborn€™s plans reached their climax in the Siege event when he leads a team to invade Asgard, which was then over Broxton, Oklahoma. Wanting to become ruler of the Norse kingdom, he fights the heroes that stand in his way, but is eventually defeated when the Sentry€™s evil half the Void is unleashed and knocks Asgard out of the sky. After the Void is defeated, Osborn is arrested and imprisoned in the Raft, where he is shown blaming his Goblin half for ruining his plans. Once again, this is a fine example of absolute power corrupting absolutely. Sure, Osborn blamed everything on his Goblin persona, but even without that Osborn was a ruthless man all on his own. He took advantage of the public during a time when people€™s perception of superheroes were mixed (this was after Civil War) and used that to convince them that what he was doing was for the benefit for everyone His claim of wanting to protect the world was nothing more than manipulation to amass power for his own plans. Osborn has recently been seen as the Green Goblin in issues of Superior Spider-Man, so I fear redemption will never be possible for Osborn. He€™s just too fractured and egotistical...although those are general requirements for being a super-villain.